WHY DO I KEEP FAILING WHEN I TRY SO HARD?

Romans 7:13-8:1
March 12, 1995
Bob Bonner

As I have observed people who come to know Jesus Christ as their personal savior and Lord, something stands out as a pattern that we could almost call a normal experience for Christians. At first, a new follower of Jesus Christ is normally relieved, excited and hopeful about their new relationship with the Lord. Sometimes they are so elated with what Jesus has already done for them that they can't wait to live their lives in a more honorable and righteous fashion. They want Jesus to use their lives in a significant way. They don't want to waste their lives.

But somewhere between six months to 2 years later, many new believers commonly hit a wall of frustration. For some, the frustration is so great, that they eventually quit walking with the Lord. For others, they just go on living a frustrated Christian life, thinking that this is the normal Christian life, when it is not. The focus of their frustrations can best be described by this often asked question: "Why do I keep failing, when I try so hard to do what is right?"

For instance: The Lord commands that we are to love each other and our enemies. So, may be you look at your boss, who is a tyrant, an insensitive, arrogant, egomaniac, and you say, "Right, Lord. I'll try to love him." But deep down, you can't stand the person. You may even hate him! But for Christ's sake, you try to love him. After just a few days of trying your best to love him and failing, you eventually hear yourself praying or thinking, "Man, I wish I could love this guy, but I just can't!"

Or, maybe Jesus has been convicting you about your talking negatively about someone behind their back. Or, maybe Jesus has shown you that complaining about others to other people without ever going to those people and helping them see where they have offended you, is wrong. So, you decide to turn this thing around and do what you are supposed to do. But then, just yesterday, you ran into a friend you had not seen in a long time, someone you wanted to impress or entertain. But before you knew it, you were telling a not so flattering, but juicy story about someone you both know. Moments later, you recognize and confess your sin to the Lord and cry out in frustration, "Why can't I stop doing what I know is wrong to do?!"

Or maybe it is the realization that cursing is wrong or using the Lord's name in vain is wrong, but you have been doing it all your life and you just can't seem to stop. Or, it's that jealousy you have toward the privileges your best friend seems to enjoy, but you never get to. You know it's wrong and you don't want envy to continue, but how do you stop it? Why does it continue to go on, day after day? 

Is this the normal Christian life? Is this the kind of life that Jesus promised us? No. It is not what He intended us to experience. So, how do we deal with it. That is just what our passage of Scripture deals with this morning. It not only explains why it is that all of us as Christians sin but in addition it shows us how we can live in more daily victory than in daily defeat.

Along with some of the material we saw in chapter six of Romans, this section of Romans, beginning with Romans 7:14, has become so enlightening to me, so helpful to my maintaining balance in my Christian life, once I finally understood it, after 20 years of walking with Christ, that I have been looking forward to passing on the good news to others, when I had the opportunity to explain it.

However, if we are going to understand this section, it is imperative that we have our thinking caps on this morning. This passage requires that we pay very close attention to each word Paul is saying and what he means by each word. If we do not, we will miss his point, and continue on needlessly living frustrated Christian lives.

Now in order for us to understand this section, I want to review for those of you who may be visiting with us, and for those of you who have seen these circles before, these circles. If you can understand what each part of these circles represent in relationship to what Paul is saying in these verses, these circles will help us understand a vitally important truth that is so often missed, because this section can be extremely ambiguous or confusing.

[CIRCLES] These circles represent what we are made of as a person. Everyone knows what our bodies are. Our soul is that invisible part of our being which makes up our personality. It is through our soul that we relate in unique ways to one another. Our spirit is really the key to who we are. Like our soul, it makes up part of us that is invisible. It is that part of us that makes us uniquely different than animals and enables us to relate to the Spirit being, God.

When I say that the spirit is the key to who we are, I mean two things: first, our spirit is the control center of our being, this is the power to make and follow through with a spiritually and morally correct decision. In addition, this is our identity. Our identity, who we really are rests with our spirits. 

I am not a pastor\teacher. That's a spiritual gift I possess. I am not a father or a husband. Those are roles I play in life right now. I am not a swimmer. That is a talent I possess. Then who I am? What is my identity? My identity is I am a child of God. Once I understand that and consider that it is true. That understanding of my identity will color or affect everything I do. The key to who I am and how I live is this spiritual identity. Someone once accurately stated of us that "I am a spirit, who has a soul that lives in a body."

When we came to Christ, he made our spirit alive to God, in the sense that we could have a personal, intimate and vital relationship with the living God. A relationship that is every bit as real as the relationship you could have with the person next to you. Until Christ entered your life, you still had a spirit, but it was lifeless or dead, in the sense that it could not get connected to God. Because of sin, mankind was separated from God. Because of sin, we lived as though God was a figment of someone’s imagination. Hence, we lived as though God did not exist or really matter.

But when Jesus died on the cross, he paid for that sin. Those who put their confidence in Christ for paying for their sin, and have invited Jesus to be the Lord of their lives, their spirit's have been made alive so as to carry on an eternal relationship with God. Their eyes have been opened to the reality of God and then they no longer live their lives independently from Him.

Meanwhile, as we still live here on earth, we have this thing called the "flesh", as we will see this term used in our passage today. This "flesh" is that drivenness that exists in each of us to live our lives independently from God. To live as though God doesn't exist. To be in charge of our own lives and to do whatever we want, regardless of what God says is right or wrong. That which is at the heart of "the flesh", as we will see in verse 14, is this thing called "sin." "Sin" is a Biblical term that describes an act or attitude of rebellion against God. In fact, these two terms are used synonymously in this passage. I believe that Paul chooses to sometimes use the term "flesh" rather than sin to describe the same thing, because he wants us to remember that it is through the members of our physical bodies, our flesh that sin comes to life. Whether it is through the eyes that we become jealous. Or through the skin that we puncture ourselves with needles filled with dope, or whether it is through the brain that we devise schemes that are wicked. As Christians, we will see that this "flesh" or "sin" is a part of us and will be a part of our lives as long as we live in these fleshly bodies.

There are two words, two pronouns from our text this morning that we must clearly identity with the correct parts of these circles. If we do not understand to what these pronouns refer, we will have a terrible time understanding who we are in Christ and understanding the problem we face with temptation and sin in our lives.

The first important term used by Paul, from verses 7:14-8:1, is the pronoun "I". This pronoun refers to the total person, of the new regenerate or born again believer, in Christ. This term looks at the Christian as a whole, not in parts. When Paul uses this pronoun here, "I" does not mean your identity in Christ. "I" does not refer to your new nature in Christ. It refers to you as the total person, but it is not pointing to any specific part.

The second important term Paul uses is the pronoun "me." Whenever you read this pronoun in these verses, it refers to only the body and soul of the newly regenerate, born again believer in Christ. It does not refer to the key to who the Christian is, the spirit. It does not refer to the control center or the identity of the believer.

Two other expressions in these verses that both refer to the same thing, that is, the human newly regenerated spirit. These expressions are, "inner man" in verse 22, and "law of my mind" verse 23.

Now, with that explanation of terms, let's look at our text together. I will attempt to read the text very slowly and literally point to the appropriate place on these circles to which the terms refer, so that you will be able to keep the ideas and flow of thought straight. This may be difficult for you to look up here and read your Bibles and write all at the same time, so for those of you who have not been in school for some time, I would suggest that you try to follow along as best you can, but maybe get a tape and go back to look over this section, because this is important information.

As we read these verses, keep in mind that because the verbs are in the present tense, Paul is talking about truths that affect us as Christians. Let's begin with verse 14, "For we know that the Law is spiritual". By "spiritual" Paul simply means that the Law was designed to hit at the core of our being, our spirits. It is something made to flick a switch on in our spirits. It is to strike at the very core of our being or identity.

"The Law is spiritual; but I [whole regenerate person] am of flesh, [what does he mean by that? He tells us right here] sold into bondage to sin." I am driven by this thing called the "flesh" to do sin, to try to live independently of God. This sin thing affects me as a whole person. I am like a prisoner to sin.

Please note that Paul does not say that "I am in the flesh". That means something totally different than "I am of the flesh." According to 8:8-9, "in the flesh" is not something that is true of Christians, but it is something that is only true of non-Christians. Being "in the flesh" refers to the condition of a person's spirit being joined with and controlled by the flesh. When Jesus saved us, he put to death the flesh in our spirit and then he joined His spirit to our spirit. So, when Paul says, "I am of the flesh", this is a statement about his person as a whole being affected by the flesh, but it is not a reference to his spirit being affected by the flesh. It is a statement acknowledging that there is a foreign power still in him, in his body and soul, called the flesh.

Paul continues, "For that which I [me as a person as a whole] am doing, I do not understand". Right there, Paul, the apostle, the mature of the mature believers tells us he has a problem or a conflict that he struggles with understanding completely. What doesn't he understand? He will explain to us what causes him problems in a second, but up front, he wants us to know that he identifies with us in wrestling with being tricked or deceived. He says, "for I am not practicing what I {would} like to {do,} but I am doing the very thing I hate." Do you see his problem? He is saying, "Wait a minute! I know that doing such and so is wrong. And I don't want to do it. So why do I all of a sudden find myself doing the very thing I hate to do and don't want to do?"

Paul is telling us that he feels very defeated when he knows what he wants to do, but for some reason, he can't do it. This very same problem plagues a lot of Christians. I usually hear it stated in the form of a question. The struggling Christian usually says something like, "You know Bob, sometimes I wonder if I'm even a Christian. I keep doing things I know are wrong. It seems to work for others, but not for me. I feel so discouraged that I'm even questioning whether or not the Christian life is even possible or if God is really there."

Ever had thoughts like that? So did the apostle Paul. But he has learned something from the Lord that is very helpful and wants to pass on to us here. Paul continues, verse 16, "But if I [over all person] do the very thing I [over all person] do not wish {to do}, I agree with the Law, {confessing} [admitting or agree with the law] that it [the law] is good."

The word here that Paul uses for "good" is different than the word he used back in verse 12. Our word here means "good" in the sense of being good "noble or excellent". Not good as in good, useful. Hence, as we learned last week, the Law isn't evil or worthless, it is purposeful and noble. The problem is not the Law. The problem is somehow with me. In the next verse, Paul tells us exactly what our problem is.

In verse 17 he writes, "So now, no longer am I [the new, born again personal as a whole] the one doing it, but sin which indwells me ["me" being my body and soul]." 

Paul is telling us something very important, here concerning how God views us as believers in relationship to sin that we commit. Basically, it is the truth that you, the believer are not sin or a sinner. You are not the "Me" that Paul refers to here. You are the spirit. Your identity is wrapped up in your spirit, in which there is no sin. That is the key to who you are. You are a saint, who may sin because flesh still abounds in the "me" which is merely your soul and your body. And even when you do wrong, it's not your or the "me" doing it, but the sin which indwells "me" (body and soul). 

The important truth that Paul is driving at here and will explain further in a moment is this: God never identifies the believer’s struggle with sin, with the believer. Our identity is in Christ. It is not based on anything we do or don't do.

Paul emphasizes this truth with this expression, "no longer." The term, translated "no longer" in English, indicates a complete and permanent change in the believer's life that goes to the root of that person's identity. Paul is saying that his new person no longer approves of the sin that still clings to him through "the flesh". Whereas before we came to Christ, our spirits didn't mind being involved in sin. But now, our inner self, our new identity strongly disapproves.

After Jesus enters our lives, sin no longer remains in our control center, the spirit. It does manage to survive and remain in our bodies and soul's and will until we either die or meet the Lord when he comes again (whichever comes first). This "sin" is no more part of us than a lead ball shackled to our ankle is part of us.

Paul goes on to explain in verse 18, "For I [my whole person, controlled by my spirit] know that nothing good [useful] dwells in me [my soul and body], that is, in my flesh; [warning: NIV---not "sinful nature". Nature refers to our spirit our identity. Nowhere in the original language does it ever refer to our sinful nature.] for the wishing is present in me [even in my soul and body, they want to do what is right, by unless I choose by my spirit, to identify and call upon the power of Christ in my spirit, then], but the doing of the good {is} not."["in me" due to fleshly corruption] 

Someone reading that verse might be quick to agree with that verse and say, "Hey, I don't have any problem accepting that. The fact is that I have known I'm no good for a long time." However, that is not what this verse is saying. In fact, it is saying just the opposite. It is saying that whatever it is that is dwelling in you is not you. For instance: If I had a wood splinter in my finger it would be "nothing good" dwelling in me. But the "nothing good", that splinter isn't me. It's the splinter. Paul talks about this splinter or thorn in 2 Corinthians 12:7. He says, "...there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me-- to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this [thorn] I entreated the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’"

Sin, or the "nothing good" or the thorn or the splinter is not me. It is also important to note that this "nothing good" is not even my physical flesh, but it is that which dwells IN my flesh.

Paul is going to great lengths in these verses to tell us that there is a second party involved in our sin struggle, whose nature is different than ours. Furthermore, Paul is saying that if I try to do good things for God, working only out of my physical and soulish powers that are driven by this foreign thing called the flesh, I cannot produce anything eternally beneficial for the Lord. It is only when I, by faith, trust Jesus moment by moment to live his life through me, that He supernaturally will use my life to do something eternally significant. Hence this requires me to stay in touch with the Lord.

Paul further explains this in verse 19, when he says, "For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish." Paul is not saying that he is incapable of doing anything right. He is saying that his desire to obey is always greater than his own human ability to obey.

In verse 20, Paul clearly states the point he has been driving at through these verse. He says, "But if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin [not me, but sin] which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wishes to do good." Evil is present in me, but it is not me.

Now, keep in mind that Paul is dealing with a sincere believer who wants very much to honor God, but keeps finding himself doing things that are wrong. We are not talking about a "carnal" Christian who is deliberately choosing to ignore God. 

Paul continues in verse 22, "For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, [that is my spirit] but I see a different law [one that chooses to live independently from God] in the members of my body, [body and soul] waging war against the law of my mind, [spirit] and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members."

Like a prisoner who has this ball and chain attached to his leg, Paul says the believer has this thing called "the flesh" or sin attached to his body and soul. As a result, there is a continual war, a battle going on between our new identity in Christ, our new desires and who we once were and our old desires and sin patterns that still cling to us, but are not us.

Now, according to verse 23, where is this battle being fought? What is the battleground? The battle ground is "the mind." Next week we will look at exactly what we can do to win this battle in the mind, but for now, just look what Satan's tactic is in this battle. If Satan can get you to think that you are the only one involved in this battle, then he's got you. Because he will use guilt against you to the point that you will get down on either yourself or God when you sin.

Let me put it this way. If a dog came along and bit you on the leg, would you beat on yourself or the dog? On the dog, right? But for most of us, in our struggle with sin, nobody has ever told us that it's the "dog"---sin---which is inflicting the pain. We think it is all us, so we blame ourselves and beat on ourselves. And after we get tired of beating on ourselves, we tend to walk away from God in a cloud of defeat and self condemnation.

Paul expresses this very feeling of defeat and frustration when he cries out in the next verse, "Wretched man that I am!" Notice that Paul did not say "sinful man that I am", but wretched, which means miserable. And there is no one more miserable than the person who has allowed sin to take control of his or her life, when they know better. When we give Satan an opportunity in our lives, he only brings misery.

At this point, Paul then asks for the frustrated believer the question that is on all of our hearts when we find ourselves in this person's situation. "Who will set me free from the body of this death?" Notice, he does not say, "What must I do?", because by this time he has tried everything. Instead he says, "Who will rescue me? Man, I need a deliverer?" Then he answers his own question in verse 25, "Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!" Why does he thank God? Because he sent us a deliverer in Jesus Christ. It is through believing that Christ actually is living in us, and that who we really are is identified to who He really is. Furthermore, with Him living in us, we can put our trust in Him working through our lives, His fighting our battles with temptation and leading us to victory. When temptation comes, we simply admit, Lord, I cannot beat this on my own. But with you enabling, living your righteous life out through me, because I am a saint, I don't have to sin. This temptation has no control over me." And we find victory. Satan is resisted and the temptation disappears for now.

If we try to fight temptation to sin which is raised up by the flesh by our own will to do good, we will fail. But when we realize, believe and consider what is true about our new identity in Christ, and trust Jesus to enable us to live as who we are, He does and we do. So we have a choice to make. Keep trying to do it on our own, independent of the Lord, or by depending upon Him.

Paul then adds, "So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh [again, not "sinful nature" as NIV] the law of sin." If you believe the lie that you as a Christian have a sinful nature, that you are a sinner rather than a saint who can sin, you will have an identity crisis. You will believe that your life is hopeless and you can never change. But the fact of the matter is, you have been changed by God, made into a new creation. You have been given Christ's identity. You have been made righteous, and given all the power you need to live as God has called you to live. 

And because you have been made righteous, there is a spiritual civil war going on inside of each of us. Look at Galatians 5:17. It says, "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." There is a war between this thing called the flesh, fighting against your spirit. You have a choice as to who wins. And sometimes you will fail.

Paul doesn't like it when he fails. But when he does fail, he doesn't get down on himself. He accepts his responsibility to not be tricked by Satan or to depend upon the flesh. But if he does fail, being deceived by this thing which is in him, this "flesh," he doesn't blame himself. He accepts the consequences of his choice to do wrong. But he doesn't condemn himself. It is not him at work, but the flesh in him. Condemning himself won't change the situation or help in any way. You want to know why? Paul tells us in 8:1, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Even when we fail, God doesn't condemn us, because we are in Christ. We were made saints. Hence, if He doesn't condemn us, then why should we? If He sees us as perfect in Christ, why shouldn't we? Our very identity is united with His. And there is nothing in Jesus to be condemned.

Hence, the ultimate problem has been solved for us. We have Jesus to help us fight the battles today. But even if we should lose a battle, the war has already been won by Jesus on our behalf. We are forever accepted, found approved and completely pleasing to God in Christ. We will never be condemned because Jesus has justified us, made us permanently righteous before God. No longer is there are reason to fear rejection by God or damnation. Furthermore, one day, even these battles will be completely over. We will be given new resurrection bodies and then, both our bodies and our souls will be cleansed of all "flesh" forever. Hence, this state of war is only temporary.  The victory has been assured. For thanks be to God who leads us in His triumph through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Hence, there are four principles that I want to focus on from this passage this morning.

The first thing that Paul makes very clear is that Evil is attached to me, but it is not me. As believers, we are not evil. I am not "in the flesh",  but this thing called "the flesh" is in me.

Second, as long as I live in this earthly body, my spirit and my flesh will be at war. The war has already been won in Christ. We don't have to fear losing and being rejected by God.

However, it is up to me, each day to choose to live as a victor, depending upon Jesus Christ, or to live as a victim, depending upon my abilities to overcome the flesh. How we implement this choosing, what it means to chose to be a victor, we will look closely at next time. Just remember that you do have a responsibility, a choice as to how you want to live. You are not powerless or helpless to do what God has called you to do.. It is not a power encounter with sin, but a truth encounter which is based upon what you choose to believe and do.

Finally, we have been saying for three weeks that this chapter has been about the effects of the law on our lives. Paul's point about the Law in these verses 14-8:1 has been that The Law is good for the Christian because it drives us back to depending upon Christ [who lives in us] to deliver us from temptation, and away from our human abilities. It shows us that we need supernatural power that resides in our spirit's bound with Christ's very spirit, to enable us to find victory over bad habits and sinful lifestyles.

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